Guard to hatchways



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

H. J. BLEULER. GUARD To HATGHWAYS.

No. 222,022.v Patented Jam-15, 1884.

@wm/fm (No Model.) v 2 Sheets- Sheet 2.

H.. J. BLEULER.

- GUARD TO HATCHWAYS. No. 292,092. y Patented Jan. l5, l884-.-

N. PETERS Pmm-Lnhogmpher. washington. D. C.

i NrTnn STATES HENRY J. BLEULER, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

AGUARD TO HATCHWAYS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters YPatent No. 292,092, dated January15, 1884.

Application mea July 30,1883. (No model.)

To all whom, it 77mg concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY J. BLEULER, of Boston, in the county ofSuffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented' certain new anduseful Improvements in Guards to Hatch- Ways, Src., against Fire, ofwhich the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention pertains to protection against the spread and circulationof fire, smoke, &c.,

1.0 in dwelling-houses and other buildings by way of the openings in theiioors or well at which the stairs or elevators are located.

This invention consists of a door arranged, preferably, at each floor orlanding of the sevl eral floors to the well, in combination withmechanism for operating the same, all substantially as hereinafterdescribed7 whereby, in cases of fire, &c., the well can be closed oropened at any floor, as may be desired or found 2o necessary, and fromboth above and below said iioor.

In the accompanying plate of drawings, in Plate 1, Figure l is aperspective view of a floor to a building and of the stair-opening or 25 well through the same and stairs, illustrating a door for opening andclosing the well, arranged for operation in accordance with thisinvention, some parts-being broken out and in vertical section; Fig. 2,a vertical section on line 2 2, Fig. l; Fig. 8, a vertical section online 3 3, Fig. l. In Plate 2, Fig. et represents a building in verticalcross-section, the well extending th rough the several floors, andhaving a door for opening and closing the well at each floor, andshowing the several doors 4o the iloor below through the well or openingC of the floor.

D is a door for closing and opening the well C at the iioor A. This doorD, preferably, is to be made of metal or other non-combustible materialor materials, and it is of a size and shapeo fully close said well Cwhen placed in suitable position therefor, as will hereinafter appear.The door D, as shown, is arranged in suitable bearings of the supportingbeams or structure J of the floor, and all so that said pinions willengage one with each of the rackbars, and thus Awhen this common shaft His turned in the one direction slide the door D from under the flooracross the well-opening C, and thus close the same, and when said shaftis turned in the opposite direction slide the door under the lioor andfrom the wellopening, and thus open the same.

To operate the shaft H as above described, the shaft is provided with apulley, K, at each end, and to eachpulley mechanism is connected, sothat from the one pulley the door can be operated from below and fromthe other above said floor. The mechanism above stated in one instanceconsists of an endless belt, L, passing about the pulley, and fromthence about another pulley, M, turning in a standard or upright, N,upon and above the oor A, and provided with a crank-handle, O, for

operating it. The turningl of the crank-handle O in one direction will,through the pulleys and belt L, connectingsame to the shaft H, carryingthe pinions, slide the door in one direction to close with it thewell-opening, and the turning of said crank in the opposite directionwill slide the door in a direction to open said well-opening. Themechanism in the other instance consists of a belt, P, passing about thepulley K, and from thence over guide pulleys or wheels Q into a positionbelow the floor, to be operated conveniently thereat. Pulling on thebelt in one direction and in the opposite direction 'obviously willslide the door in the proper direction in either case to close or openthe well-openin g, the same as described from the turning of the crank;but in this instance the door is operated from below, while in the otherit is operated from above the floor.

The door preferably is provided with fricroo tion rolls or wheels It, torun upon the guide rails.

to slide horizontally upon parallel horizontal 5o guideways or rails E,and at either end of the well C, and in said slide to travel under theDoors as above described may be arranged at each and every floor of thebuilding, and, if so desired, the connecting mechanism for operatingfrom both above and below the floor at which either door is locatedmay,. as is plain, have its operating belts or ropes so extended throughthe various floors of the building that the door of any floor can beoperated as desired from any other door, and both above and below saidfloor. Such an arrangement of the doors for the several floors of abuilding is shown in Fig. 4L, Plate 2. A rope to each door passes vovera separate pulley, M, above the upper floor, R, and a rope extends downthrough the several floors to the lower floor, S, where each end ofthese ropes has ahandle, T, by which to pull it. In the tigure the ropesmarked with a figure l operate the door at iloor marked R, the ropesmarked'2 operate the door at floor marked U, and the ropes marked 3operate the door at oor marked V, the door to floor U being shown asclosed or ,moved over the opening, and the other as open, or away fromthe opening or well.

rIhe operating belts or ropes.or other devices by which the doors are tobe operated, it is preferable to label or mark in a manner to indicateat a glance how and which of the same is to be used to open or close adoor, as the case may be-as, for instance, to mark or label them withthe words Shut and Open, and,should the operating mechanism be extendedthrough the series of floors, to also label or mark it so as todistinguish the floor-as, for instance, First, Second, Third, Src.

The doors may be made in parts, to slide in directions opposite to eachother, and7 meeting, close the well-opening, in which case separateoperating mechanism would be necessary for each part.

Obviously, doors arranged to open and close the Well-opening in theiioors of dwelling-houses, Src., as above described, must, in

.cases of ire, Src., if properly handled and manipulated and in dueseason, act as an advantageous protection against the spread of the iirethrough the building,while at the same time they offer of themselves nopractical obstruction to the escape of the occupants, for the reasonthat each door is adapted to be operated from both above and below thefloor.

It plainly is best that these doors should be arranged to shut asclosely as possible the well-opening, and consequently they will thusmake guards against the downward ilow of water, which advantage can bestill further enhanced by making them of a basin shape, to the betterhold or contain the water.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 1. A doorconstructed and arranged in relation to a well-opening, G, in the floorsof a building, to close and open the same, in combination with mechanismconnected with said door, and extending through the several iloors ofthe building, to be operated at any one of said iioors, and so as toslide said door either to close or open said well-opening, as the casemay be, substantially as and for the purpose specified. L

2. The combination, with a well-opening in the floor of a building, of adoor constructed and arranged to slide across said opening, rack-bars F,a shaft, H, gearwheels G, pulley- Wheels K, and ropes L and pulley M,for operation of said door, substantially as and for the purposespecified. v

In testi mony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of twosubscribing wit nesses.

HENRY J. BLEULER.

lllitnesses:

EDWIN W. BROWN, WM. S. BnLLoWs.

